What is the Scientific Method.
According to Science Buddies it is
"The scientific method is a process for experimentation that is used to explore observations and answer questions."
Photo Source : Pixabay
My take
This to me seems a bit vague so let me give you my take on what the Scientific Method is. The Scientific Method is where the observer (you) discover the conditions you find something in (the logic) and through experiment one discovers what can reasonably be expected to happen when you change those conditions. Once this has been done over and over again. In fact so many times that you have an extreme amount of experimental evidence to point to and say "This is what will happen with this thing if you make the conditions this way" the discovery becomes known as a Theory.
There is a process that is required be strictly adhered to in order for the experiments to be considered valuable. A more detailed explanation of Steps of the Scientific Method can be found Here. I share Science Buddies ideas about this in there chart below.
Photo Source: Science Buddies
My take on this.
Some of these steps are a matter of opinion and to me depend upon the subject of your experiment. For example some steps like doing back ground research could be a waist of time depending on if someone else has done a like experiment. The biggest problem that occurs when doing back ground research is that it may create bias or thinking that something works a way that it does not in the mind of the observer. This causes delay in figuring out the "what?" of the experiment or what the universe is telling you. Thus some times it is best to let the experiment tell on itself. Three important clues you have it right are:
- There needs to be more than one observer. More on this in another post.
- The logical condition for each experiment must be the same. Makes it much easier to discover the reasoning.
- It must be repeatable. You must get the same results or you don't know what is going on. Other observers must be able to duplicate the experiment.
Photo Source : Pixabay
A truth in today's world is that some people make claims about science, but have never done a experiment. There is a difference between knowing something through an experiment and knowing something from reading about it. Reading a book is really reading someone's testimony and in science is not accepted as evidence. It is how the information is disseminated. Thus interested parties when reading about science should always remember that such is testimony and you don't know as a result of reading a book. lol